Portable electric-control apparatus



May 1, 1928.

J. 5 LONG PURTABLE ELECTRIC CONTROL APPARATUS Filed April 13. 192v Fly. 1..

INVENTOR Patented May 1, 1928.

UNITED STATES 1,668,161 PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN E. LONG, 01? MULTNOMAI E, OREGON.

PORTABLE ELECTRIC-CONTROL APPARATUS.

Application filed April 18, 1927. Serial No. 188,458.

My invention relates to improvements in electric circuit control devices especially adapted for use in connection with, and of the type shown in the patent granted to myself February 9, 1926, No. 1,572,212.

The particular object of my invention is to provide an electric current controlling device, especially adapted for controlling a plurality of circuits, and which is adapted to be used upon a portable support where such controlling device would be subject to uneven motion. Such devices comprise a container or receptacle holding a suppl of mercury thru which a tape is drawn, w ich tape is perforated in a predetermined manner and functions as a circuit controller, such as to cause electric lamps in a bank upon an electric sign to be illuminated in a pattern which progresses across or along such bank. Inasmuch as the mercury thus contained serves as a terminal, it is essential that such liquid cover all of the terminals arranged at the bottom of the container. The container must also be provided with apertures for admitting and withdrawing the tape and unless devices are arranged to prevent the mercury from slopping about in the container, the mercury in aportable device of this character will uncover some of the terminals and also will become lost thru such apertures.

I attain this object by providing a grid which is imperforate and thus is adapted to form a cover for such container, such cover portion being provided with endent transverse and longitudinal portions which fit within the container and slidingly engage the tape and form partitions in the container to divide the interior of the latter into a number of separate chambers. If the pendent partitions are made of metal they serve as electrical conductors between the separate'pools of mercury but if the partitions are made of insulating or non-conducting material it is necessary to provide apertures therethru to maintain electrical connection between all of the separated pools.

A further and incidental object of my invention is to provide means for maintaining all of these separated pools of mercury at a uniform depth not onl to permit redistribution of mercury whic might be carried from one 001 to another by the moving tape, but a so to permit the equal distribution of additional mercury which might be poured into the container to supply losses,

such additional mercury distributing itself equally to all of the pools, thru such means.

A further and incidental object of myinvention is to provide devices adjacent the apertures in the container for admitting and withdrawing the moving tape, which devices will prevent mercury from tending to become lost by escaping from the contamer.

The details of the foregoing phases of my invention are hereinafter described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a substantially diagrammatic view of my improved control element;

Fig. 2 is a larger scaled longitudinal section thru my improved control element; and

Fig. 3 is a transverse elevation taken on the line 33 in Fig. 2 and shows the arrangement of the holes provided for assuring the maintenance of a uniform depth of mercury thruout the several pools.-

I have shown my invention as being embodied in an electrical circuit controlling apparatus comprising an open-top receptacle 3, having a conducting or non-conducting body 3, and a bottom portion 3". his essential that the bottom portion 3', be made of non-conducting material because it is in such bottom that the terminals 4, are embedded.

The upper surface 3 of such bottom is plane except where it is recessed at the ends to receive guide rolls 5. Electric lamps (not shown) 2, are connected by conduits 6, each contact being separately connected to its cor-responding lamp. A ribbon-like control element of non-conducting material such, for example, as paper, is led into such receptacle and beneath said guide rolls 5 and slidingly engages the upper surface 3', of the bottom 3. c

A body of mercury is adapted to overlie such ribbon-like control element and such terminals within the receptacle, and to serve as a common terminal for all of the ter minals recessed in such bottom 3". Such body of mercury is connected to the electric lights to be controlled through a return conduit 9, which conduit is connected to a source or suppl of electric energy, not shown. The ribbon-like control element 7, preferably is arranged in endless form and moved continuously by any driving element. In addition to the guide rolls 5, provided 12 are provided to lead such endless ribbonlike control into such receptacle and out of the latter.

To adapt such control element so that it may be mounted upon a portable support where it will be subject to uneven motion which would tend to cause the mercury body within the receptacle to be slopped, and thrown from such receptacle, I provide a cover 13, which is imperforate but which is slightly shorter than the length of the elongated receptacle 3, so that slots or apertures are thus provided at the ends through which the ribbon-like control element may be inserted and withdrawn, respectively.

Such cover is provided with longitudinal and transverse pendent portions 13 and 13*, respectively. Such cover and pendent portions are preferably integral and made of brass or similar electrically conducting material and such compound element is fas tened to the body 3 of the receptacle by screws 14. All of the pendent portions are preferably of such length as to approach the bottom surface 3 quite closely leaving only a space substantially equal to the thickness of the ribbon-like control, thus to provide a close fitting closure with the latter to prevent the passage of mercury under such pendent portions.

Such transverse pendent portions 13 are of such width as to slidingly engage the inner faces of the side walls of the receptacle body 3, and to provide a substantial closure therein. Thus the pendent portions constitute partitions in such receptacle by which the body of mercury is divided into a number of small pools of mercury separated from each other by such partitions. When such pendent portions are made of material which freely conduct electricity, such pools are in eflicient electric connection with each other, but if such pendent portions are made of an insulating or non-conducting material, it is necessary to provide apertures to connect such pools electrically with each other.

Separating such body of mercury into a plurality of pools of relatively small quantity which pools are contained within chambers having imperforate walls thus adapts my control element to portable use because the slopping about of the mercury in such chambers does not affect the electrical connection because the mercury cannot be lost from suchchambers. Unless the motion is so severe that the terminals embedded in the bottom 3 of such receptacle I become uncovered, the moving of the mercury does not affect the circuits controlled thereby.

I find that it is decidedly advantageous to provide the transverse pendent portions 3 with a plurality of small apertures 15,

whether such pendent portions are made of electrically conducting material or not. Such apertures are arranged substantially at the normal level line of the body of mcrcury and thus serve automatically to' maintain the separated pools at a uniform level throughout the receptacle. The body of mercury becomes depleted after a time, due to variousv causes, and small quantities of mercury seem to pass from one pool to another due to the movement of the ribbon-like control element through such receptacle, and thus such apertures serve to maintain a uniform level of mercury throughout the receptacle.

When a fresh supply of mercury is poured into the receptacle to supply such depletion it is redistributed uniformly to all of the pools. The relativel great mass of mercury and also its skin e ect tend to counteract its fluidity and thus if apertures of relatively small size, or a single narrow aperture is arranged along such level line, such aperture or apertures, does or do not permit the active moviement of mercury between the separated poo s.

' The end pool into which the ribbon-like control element is introduced and the similar pool at the opposite end from which such control element is withdrawn, are provided with apertures and to prevent the small amount of mercury contained within such pool from slopping out, I provide 'downwardly curved baffles 15, arranged below such apertures. Adjacent the aperture throughlwhich the control element is withdrawn and at the opposite side of the path of the latter, I provide a brush element 16, which exercises a dragging action upon that surface of the control element to remove any small quantity of mercury which might adhere to such element and which would otherwise be withdrawn from the receptacle.

I claim:

- 1. In an electrical control apparatus of the character described, comprising an open top receptacle having guides at its ends adapted to locate a ribbon-like control element relatively to a bath ofliquid electrical conducting material'within such receptacle, an imperforate cover for such receptacle, such cover being provided with a plurality ofpendent flanges extending transversely thereof and of such length as to lie adjacent the path of the ribbon-like control element when the latter is positioned in the receptacle, and of such width as to engage the sides of the latter to constitute transverse partitions therein, for the purpose specified.

2. In an electrical :control apparatus of the character described, comprising an open top receptacle having guides at its ends adapted to locate a ribbon-like control element relatively to a bath of liquid electrical conducting material within such receptacle, an imperforate cover for such receptacle, such cover being provided with a pluralit of pendent flanges extending transverselyt ereof and of such len h as to lie adjacent the path of the ribbonike control element when the latter is positioned in the receptacle, and of such width as to engage the sides of the latter to constitute transverse partitions therein, for the purpose specified, such transverse partitions being provided with slots spaced from the bottom of such receptacle.

3. In an electrical control apparatus of the character described, comprising an open top receptacle having guides at its ends adapted to locate a ribbon-like control element relatively to a bath of liquid electrical conducting material within such receptacle,

an iinperiorate cover for such receptacle,

such cover being spaced at its ends from such receptacle to provide apertures for such control element, the ends of such receptacle adjacent such apertures being formed to prevent the loss of such liquid electrical conducting material from such receptacle.

4. In an electrical control apparatus of the character described, comprising an open top receptacle having guides at its ends adapted to locate a ribbon-like control element relatively to a bath of liquid electrical conducting material within such receptacle, an imperforate cover for such receptacle, such cover being spaced at its ends from such receptacle to provide apertures for such control element, the ends of such receptacle adjacent such apertures being provided with ba-flles to prevent the loss of such liquid electrical conducting material from such receptacle.

5. In an electrical control apparatus of the character described, comprising an open top receptacle havin guides at its ends adapted to locate a ribbon-like control element relatively to a bath of liquid electrical conducting material within such receptacle, one end of such receptacle adjacent its guides being provided with devices for preventing the loss of such liquid electrical conducting material thru such guides.

6. In an electrical control apparatus of the character described, comprismg an open top receptacle having guides at its ends adapted to locate a ribbon-like control element relatively to a bath of liquid electrical conducting material within such rece tacle, a cover for such receptacle provide with apertures at each end adjacent such guides, thru which apertures the ends of the control element are passed, a deflecting baflie and a brush element at opposite sides of the path of such control element and adjacent one of such apertures to prevent the loss of such liquid electrical conducting material thru such aperture.

7. In an electrical control apparatus of thecharacter described, comprising an open top elongated receptacle havingdevices for leading a ribbon-like control element thru a bath of liquid electrical conducting material within such receptacle, an imperforate cover for such receptacle, such cover being provided with a plurality of pendent flan es extending transversel thereof and 0 such length as to lie :1 jacent the path of the ribbon-like control element when the latter is positioned in the receptacle, and of such width as to engage the sides of the latter to constitute transverse partitions therein, for the purpose specified, such transverse partitions being provided .with slots of predetermined maximum width and spaced from the bottom of such receptacle.

8. In an electrical control apparatus of the character described, comprising an. open top elongated receptacle having devices for leading a ribbon-like control element thru a bath of 1i uid electrical conducting material within suc receptacle, an imperforate cover for such receptacle provided with a pendent transverse flange of such length asto lie adjacent the-path'of the ribbon-like control element, and of such width as to engage the sides of the rece tacle to constitute a transverse partition tierein, such partition being provided with a slot of predetermined maximum width and arranged a predetermined distance from the bottom of the rece t-acle.

JOHN E. LO G. 

